Short Assignment 5

Part One

Compare and contrast the following author biographies, using the list of criteria below to help you make the comparison. While at first glance each set of biographies may appear to be very similar to one another, try to note differences, with an eye towards making sense of those differences. If the different ways they are represented would actually affect how you use them differently in a research project, then take the time to explain why.

Biographies to compare:

Marshall McLuhan in Wikipedia with Michelle Citron in Wikipedia

    Structure of article: The Citron article was introduced with a brief description of her early life of where she was born and academic attainments. Then the article discussed her current career and the contributions she made to the film industry as a feminist. Next the article included two charts which pointed out her filmography and multimedia. The article ended with a brief bibliography of her memoirs then concluded with a references section. The McLuhan article was also introduced with a brief summary of who he was. Next there was an extensive description of his upbringing and early life story that detailed his rise. The article then included an introduction to his major accomplishments and a summary that detailed each of his individual publications. This article concluded with by establishing and informing on his legacy.

    Kinds of information contained: Citron- Early life, Career, Filmography, Multimedia, Bibliography and References. McLuhan- Life and career, Major works, Key concepts, Legacy Works cited, Further reading and External links.

    Kinds of information linked to: Citron- Linked to the different universities she attended and the McLuhan- linked to various researches done on him and by him.

    References: Citron- This article referenced books and scholarly material. McLuhan- This article used a works cited format that linked to other Wikipedia articles.

    Tone of writing: Citron- the tone of writing in this article was brief and straight forward; it also left room for more information to be added especially since she is still alive and active in her career. McLuhan- The tone of this article was more autobiographic and complete detailed his life and works accomplished form his birth until his death.  

    Illustrations: Citron- Charts of works. McLuhan-Picture of a street sigh named after him and one of his famous triad diagrams.

    Credentials of author: Michelle Citron is a film, video and multimedia artist, scholar and author. Herbert Marshall McLuhan was a Canadian philosopher of communication theory.

    Lists of works: Citron- Filmography/ Multimedia.  McLuhan- Major publications/ Key concepts

    Anything else important? McLuhan- Legacy, this section asserted the significance and influence of his life works.

Henry Sidgwick in Wikipedia with Henry Sidgwick in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

The Sidgwick article in Wikipedia only included a brief biography and another short section of his works and concluded with a list of his publications. The Encyclopedia article introduced who he was and his significance and articulated more in depth his life and background. Then there was lengthy section devoted to his Methods of Ethics and Philosophy, which was very informative and descriptive. Then the article recalled the controversies brought on by Sidgwick’s Epistemology. The article also pointed out his views on religion and Parapsychology, and then detailed his thought on economics and education. The references from the Encyclopedia article were mostly on Sidgwick’s own published works. The Wikipedia article referenced other articles submitted on Wikipedia. 

Part Two

Featured Article: Cold Feet

  

The verifiability of this featured article was credible and based on fact and audience reaction to the show’s popularity. It was obvious that it covered material that was very much relevant and helped to facilitate it to readers. The summary and style of the article was a connection between those who were familiar with the show and those who may have never heard of it. This summary’s style was conducing to the type of show it was and detailed the series and the production of it. While the US sitcom Friends was enjoying enormous worldwide success, the UK had its own thirty and older couple based hit on its hands. Cold Feet, comedy drama that ran between 1998 and 2003, it’s still so fondly remembered today and producers are trying to bring it back.

The show was created by Mike Bullen and it was centered on the lives of three Manchester couples. Fay Ripley and John Thomson were the married couple initially struggling to conceive, she was desperate and he was reluctant. Robert Bathurst and Hermione Norris were the typical middle class married couple, he a successful and snobby management consultant who maintains a cold front towards his bored housewife. Finally, the easy favorites of the trio of couples were James Nesbitt and Helen Baxendale whose characters got together in the first episode. Nesbitt, as Adam charmed the nation with his cheeky Irish wit while Baxendale’s alluring yet spritely Rachel had a similar effect. It was their ups and downs in particular that captivated fans. They were the Ross and Rachel from the American Show “Friends” of Cold Feet.

Each week, eight million viewers would regularly tune in to see what their favorite northern characters were up to. When Adam and Rachel got married 9.1 million joined them. When Rachel died at the end of the series, 10.4 million watched.

It’s a success which hasn’t achieved since in that tricky format of romantic comedy drama. To win over men as well as women with romance is no easy task. But Cold Feet managed it by being moving and funny also complex but utterly absorbing. Much like Friends, the show had characters that viewers both male and female could identify with, while being brilliantly written at the same time.